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Good Morning,

Tiger Global disbanded its Europe team, CLO sales are booming, Porsche will exit Germany's DAX index, markets were met with worrying jobs data, Trump is doubling down on Big Tech antitrust, and Blue Owl is sponsoring tennis pros to raise brand awareness among rich individual investors.

Let's dive in.

Before The Bell

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Markets

• US stocks recovered on the back of tech yesterday as investors digested crucial jobs data and Google's favorable antitrust ruling

• Bonds rallied to recover from yesterday's global selloff on disappointing US jobs data

  • US 30Y yield fell over 10 bps after briefly touching 5%

Earnings

• Dollar Tree beat Q2 earnings and revenue estimates but warned tariffs will pressure near-term profits, the firm nonetheless raised its FY outlook amid mitigation efforts including supplier negotiations, shifting manufacturing, and selective price hikes (WSJ)

• Salesforce beat Q2 earnings and revenue estimates but issued weaker-than-expected guidance citing challenges in marketing and commerce products alongside slower customer expansion; revenue growth remained in single digits as the firm lags peers in capitalizing on the AI boom (CNBC)

• Macy's beat Q2 earnings and revenue estimates on their strong comparable sales growth in three years boosted by momentum in denim, women's contemporary apparel, and watches; the firm raised FY guidance on tariff clarity, revamped stores, and healthier inventories position (CNBC)

• American Eagle beat Q2 earnings and revenue estimates as timely marketing campaigns with Sydney Sweeney and Travis Kelce drove new customer acquisition and traffic gains; the firm reaffirmed FY guidance but guided lower operating income amid tariff pressures (CNBC)

• Figma beat Q2 revenue estimates and Q3 and FY guidance in its debut earnings as a public company driven by strong adoption of new AI-powered design tools and acquisitions of Modyfi and Payload (CNBC)

• What we're watching this week:  

  • Today: Broadcom, lululemon, DocuSign

• Full calendar here

Prediction Markets

• Busy September, and not just for Wall Street.

• Trade your predictions on a range of events, only on Kalshi. Sign up with code LIT and get a $20 bonus when you trade $100.

Headline Roundup

• US appealed tariffs ruling to SCOTUS (CNBC)

• US risks unwinding trade deals if it loses tariff case (RT)

• US job openings fell to a ten-month low (BBG)

• Early signs emerge of euro's beefed-up global status (RT)

• Australia GDP grew 1.8% YoY by the most in two years (CNBC) 

• Borrowers flood bond markets in September spree (BBG)

• Investment firms sold a record $320B of CLOs this year (BBG)

• Blue Owl is playing broader audience as alternatives go mainstream (CNBC)

• KKR and Apollo fuel rush of private investment into Asia schools (BBG)

• Tiger Global disbanded its Europe team (SFT)

• Bridgewater surges in China, luring billions and a waitlist (BBG)

• xAI's CFO resigned within months (WSJ)

• Polymarket was cleared to launch in US (CNBC)

• Nasdaq revamped rules for small IPOs and Chinese firms (BBG)

• BlackRock lost a $17B Dutch pension mandate over ESG pullback (BBG)

• Porsche will exit Germany's DAX index (BBG)

• Food companies phase out artificial colors amid MAHA campaign (RT)

• US has more unemployed people than open jobs for first time since 2021 (YH)

• US workers are becoming more stressed about finances (RT)

• US holiday spending is set for steepest drop since Covid (RT)

• Epstein victims plan to release their own client list (BBG)

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Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

• Italian bank BMPS' $18.8B bid for rival Mediobanca broke through the 'minimum acceptance level'

• Billionaire Koch family agreed to acquire a minority stake in NFL's New York Giants at a reported $10B valuation

• Swiss pharma giant Novartis will acquire rights to cardiovascular medicines from China's Argo Biopharma in a $5.2B deal 

• PE firm Madison Dearborn Partners acquired a majority stake in insurance firm NFP's wealth business from insurance giant AON for $2.7B

• PE firm GTCR is weighing a bid for Hellman & Friedman-owned residential security company SimpliSafe at a $2.5B valuation, including debt

• Mining giant Anglo American is seeking buyers for its $2.5B stake in Valterra Platinum  just three months after spinning off the business

• Investment firm Barings is exploring a sale of luxury island resort JW Marriott Marco Island for $1B

• Warner Bros. Discovery is weighing a 20% stake sale in its studio and streaming business ahead of a planned spinoff

• PE firm Hunter Point and SWF Temasek will make minority investments in Investment manager Nuveen's private credit arm Nuveen Private Capital in private credit push

• Apollo considered a takeover of $8B-listed UK asset manager M&G

VC

• French AI startup Mistral AI is finalizing a $2.4B funding round at a $14B post-money valuation from investors including Abu Dhabi's MGX

• Digital identity wallet ID.me raised a $340M Series E at a $2B+ valuation led by Ribbit Capital

• European startup IQM Quantum Computers raised a $320M round at an over $1B valuation led by Ten Eleven Ventures 

• European AI supply chain automation startup HappyRobot raised a $44M Series B led by Base10 Partners

• Allocate, an OS for private market investing, raised a $30.5M Series B led by Portage Ventures

• Deposit management startup ModernFi raised a $30M Series B led by Canapi Ventures

• FirstClub, a startup delivering curated products to wealthy Indian households, raised a $23M Series A led by Accel and RTP Global

• Orchard Robotics, a tech startup to help fruit growers manage their crops, raised a $22M Series A led by Quiet Capital and Shine Capital

• Helpfeel, a Japanese AI knowledge data platform, raised a $22M Series E led by Global Brain Corporation

• Copper, a startup making battery-powered kitchen stoves, raised a $20M Series A led by Prelude Ventures

• Plant-based compostable plastic alternative startup Xampla raised a $14M Series A led by Emerald Technology Ventures

• Cybersecurity provider Tidal Cyber raised a $10M Series A led by Bright Pixel Capital

• Advisor.com, a platform for individuals to discover and receive financial advice, raised a $9M seed round led by Walkabout Ventures

• Welcome Tech, a digital platform serving immigrant workforces and employers, raised a $7.5M round

• ArcaScience, an AI-driven healthtech startup, raised a $7M seed round led by The Moon Venture

• Workforce infrastructure startup Sequifi raised a $6.7M seed round led by Cervin Ventures

• Meroka, a startup restoring humanity in healthcare, raised a $6M seed round led by Better Tomorrow Ventures and Slow Ventures

• AI startup for mechanical engineering Leo AI raised a $5M seed round led by Flint Capital

• Human Behavior, a startup using AI to study online behavior, raised a $5M seed round from General Catalyst, Y Combinator, and others

• Property management automation startup MagicDoor raised a $4.5M seed round led by Okapi Venture Capital and Shadow Ventures

• Waveful, a social platform helping people create authentic connections through shared passions, raised a $2M seed round from a16z, Italian Angels for Growth, and others

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

• Trump family-backed American Bitcoin soared over 50% in its trading debut for a $5B valuation

• Transit tech firm Via Transportation is seeking to raise $470M at a $3.5B valuation in an IPO

• Abu Dhabi AI firm G42 is seeking to sell a 2% stake in AI decision analytics firm Presight AI for $100M

• Florida-based flood insurance firm Neptune filed for a US IPO

• Saudi agri investor SALIC sold an 11% stake in Brazilian chicken producer BRF, helping remove a hurdle for BRF's $2.6B merger with beef giant Marfrig Global Foods

• Brazil's central bank rejected Banco de Brasilia's acquisition of Banco Master amid struggles for fresh capital

• Activist hedge fund HoldCo Asset Management took a $1.8% stake worth $160M in regional lender Comerica and plans to launch a board fight to push for a sale

SPAC / SPV

• European corporate Bitcoin holder Treasury raised a $147M round led by Winklevoss Capital and Nakamoto Holdings and will IPO in Amsterdam

Debt

• Saudi Arabia sold $5.5B of international bonds to put it on course for a record year of issuance

• Brazil's state-owned oil giant Petrobras sold $2B of bonds in global markets

• Goldman Sachs Asset Management, KKR, Arcmont, and Canada's PSP are providing $1.6B in PIK debt to back CapVest Partner's $11.7B LBO of German drugmaker Stada

• Denmark plans to raise $1.56B in Europe's first sovereign green bond under new rules

• GTCR is in talks with HPS Investment Partners for $1.2B in private credit to back a potential $2.5B LBO of residential security company SimpliSafe from Hellman & Friedman

• Philippine conglomerate San Miguel is seeking $1.5B in bank debt in the country's largest debt deal this year

• Turkey's SWF Turkiye Wealth Fund raised $1B in bonds yielding 7% and 7.75%

• German airline Lufthansa is looking to refinance debt though a $700M convertible bonds sale

• Blackstone's flagship private credit fund sold $500M of investment-grade bonds at a 160 bps premium

• SoftBank-backed Indian mobile advertising platform InMobi is seeking a $350M private loan for a share buyback

• BlackRock-owned Australian battery maker Akaysha Energy raised $196M in bank debt to expand its global battery fleet

• Saudi Aramco is planning to sell dollar-denominated Islamic bonds 

• RBC is looking at selling AT1 notes in Canadian dollars to help refinance AT1 debt

Bankruptcy / Restructuring / Distressed

• Mozambique is creating a SPV for a group of state-owned companies to acquire 91% of national airline LAM for $130M as part of bailout efforts

Fundraising / Secondaries

• Private markets investor StepStone plans to raise over $7B across two secondaries funds

• Great Hill Partners raised $7B for its ninth PE fin in just five months 

• Peak Rock Capital raised $3B across its fourth flagship PE fund and third credit fund

• HSBC Asset Management is raising a $1B evergreen PE fund targeting HNWIs

• Conservative-focused VC firm 1789 Capital is pitching a $1B fund to invest in South Florida real estate

• NEA VC spinout NewView Capital is raising $500M for a fourth VC secondaries fund 

• Investment firm Hamilton Lane launched an evergreen secondaries fund with $365M in commitments 

• Khosla Ventures and Breakthrough Energy Ventures are backing a new collaborative climate VC growth fund targeting the 'missing middle'

Crypto Sum Snapshot

• SEC and CFTC announced a joint initiative to coordinate efforts crypto

• London's bullion market will trial digital gold

• Asia's wealthy families are going all-in on crypto

Check out our Crypto Sum newsletter for the full stories on everything crypto!

Exec’s Picks

• Some of the most prominent consumer companies did not succeed despite breaking the rules. They succeeded because they broke the rules. Check out

  Matt Brown and Georgina McMillan amazing essay on the alchemy of N of 1 consumer companies.

• Six months into tariffs, businesses have no idea how to price anything. A unique but unsurprising problem uncovered by WSJ…

• NFL star Saquon Barkley is playing for equity. A move that has allowed him to invest in startups like Anthropic, Anduril, Ramp, Cognition, Neuralink, Strike, and Polymarket and funds like Founders Fund, Thrive Capital, and Multicoin Capital. Check out Polina Pompliano's profile on Saquon Barkley's approach to personal finance.

Finance & Startup Recruiting 💼

Litney Partners

If you're a junior banker looking for your next career move, check out Litney Partners, a recruiting venture between Litquidity and Whitney Partners (the oldest purely financial services executive search and consulting firm), Litney Partners places talent at leading firms in PE, hedge funds, VC, growth, credit, IB, and fintech and is currently recruiting for some incredible roles. Head over to our website to drop your resume and we'd love to get in touch!

Next Play

If you're down bad, realizing finance isn't for you, and want to explore the world of startups (BizOps, chief of staff, strategic finance, etc.), fill out this form. Next Play will reach out to schedule a 1:1 video call if they think they can help as your own, personal startup matchmaker. They've grown their community to over 50k talented professionals and have deep relationships across the tech ecosystem.

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*DISCLAIMER: Investment advice provided by Autopilot Advisers, LLC ("Autopilot"), an SEC-registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investing carries risks, including loss of principal. As always, be smart out there. Litquidity is compensated to promote AutoPilot. Compensation details available upon request.